Fox News has done much to destroy the good name of Western journalism by turning the news business into bigoted entertainment. Since bigotry is a lie it has to change constantly to escape exposure. So-called “terrorism expert” Steven Emerson crossed a line on Fox News by claiming that there were “no-go zones” in Europe.
Emerson later apologized for the comments as did Fox News below.
The biggest lesson for journalists concerning this shoddy example of reporting is that Fox News let the incredible claims by Emerson to stand unchallenged.
In reporting about immigrants and our ever-culturally diverse society in Europe, the media too often permits incredible claims by anti-immigration politicians to stand unchallenged.
Common mistakes by the media when reporting on migration and minorities:
- White sources are always used as authorities when immigrants and minorities are the topic
- Editors of Finland’s main dailies are white Finns
- Immigrant and visible minority voices are rarely if ever permitted to make their case
- Rarely if ever do editors ask if the source of the “immigrant problem” are whites
- We give inflated respectability and importance to racists because they mirror our attitudes
- In Finland, the stronger racism became, the more airtime it gets
- The rise of racism in our society and our coverage of it reveals how unbalanced and uncritical our media is
- When it comes to fighting racism, the media are part of the problem
Category: Enrique Tessieri